Merry Christmas Eve!
While Fourth of July is one of my least favorite holidays, Christmas Eve is one of my favorites. Trying to explain the wonders of Christmas Eve is like trying to explain a magic trick.
It just takes all of the magic out of it.
Christmas Eve is like…fairy dust shimmering in the glow of the autumn moon. Glitter confetti falling in a dimly-lit white-silk tent. Bright stars, brilliant against a cold winter sky. Diamond dust tossed by a jewel-encrusted glove. Bejewelled grains of sand glimmering on a bright summer beach…
Bad similes all. And I even stole the last one.
After Christmas festivities have ended, I will be headed north to spend time with friends in New England. For the first time in 22 years, I have the freedom to go where I please for the holidays. No more long sweltering days spent in hot gymnasiums at high school wrestling tournaments. No more school schedules. And while I loved them, it is time to bid goodbye to those days. For now, simplicity reigns. I am looking forward to seeing my friends. Below 0° temperatures. Walks in the snow, skiing, hiking. The fires, the brandy, the laughter. There is even talk of horse-drawn sleighs.
So no matter what you are doing this week, I hope that you do it safely and joyfully with people you love. *Expand your joy so deep that it doesn’t matter what others do or don’t do. You still have waters of bliss to bathe in at any given moment.
(*Those last two sentences can be attributed to Victoria Erickson).
So why not expand your joy? Considering this past year, I think we all deserve it. Ask yourself, what can you do to expand your joy this coming week? Visiting someone you love? Chasing the snow? Getting outside to breathe cold air (me!) or to sunbathe in the tropics? Hunkering down? Calling out of work?
Whatever it is, I have a suggestion for everyone: as we approach 2021, let’s not make any New Year’s resolutions. Can we all just cut ourselves a break this year? Let’s just take 2021 for what it will be:
Not 2020.
I’ll be blogging remotely next week. I have a blog on fear ready, plus a new Gab Sesh with an author. The expansion of joy deserves a little more space, and I’m sure I’ll be writing about my time with friends, because when I’m away, new material presents itself on a silver platter. Those are the wonders of travel. A new perspective around every corner.
Merry Christmas, and I’ll catch your act Monday.